Comics
[Advance Comic Review] “Avengers: Rage of Ultron” OGN
“Avengers: Rage of Ultron” OGN represents everything you love about the golden age of super hero comics mashed against the modern age of super heros in a glorious reunion of Rick Remender and Jerome Opeña. Featuring the signature break neck pace Remender is known for and the highly detailed world of Opeña, Rage of Ultron feels like the comic equivalent of a blockbuster comic book movie at over a 100 pages its a brisk and engaging book that never lets you down.
STORY BY: Rick Remender
ART BY: Jerome Opeña, Pepe Larraz, Mark Morales
PUBLISHER: Marvel Comics
RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2015
PRICE: $24.99 USD
In the world of super heroes and villains death and defeat are only a brief reprieve from the constant. The nature of the medium promotes circularity, and Remender manages to capture this idea beautifully in the beginning of Rage of Ultron. The Avengers of old make a mistake that forces the Avengers of new to battle the same threat, only exponential more worse. The story deals with the idea of preemptive attacks and just what it means to be alive.
Vision and Hank Pym end up being the star players as the book rolls on, and their conflict becomes the internal combustion engine that fuels Rage. There is something to be said about the relationship between the creator and the created that gives the primary theme for the book. But its more about what it means to be alive, and what being alive actually means. Do you shield your true self? Do you pour yourself into your work? Or do you succumb to your flaws and become a monster. Remender makes the big and bombastic conflict pale in comparison to the internal struggle of the genius creator.
Jerome Opeña has a way with drawing Marvel characters that not only feels right, but feels almost perfect. There are many pages in this book that showcase his beautiful style in as big terms as he possible can, and with every subsequent monumental display of his power the whole thing never feels hard to digest or understand. Working with Remender has the art on point without ever missing a beat. So with maybe only one exception the entire book remains clear and concise, and features the best art of any OGN Marvel has released to this date.
As a companion piece to the upcoming film this book works beautifully, but it really serves as a love letter to Rick Remender’s Marvel work as a whole. It deals with many of the themes he’s touched upon in the past: legacy, the generational gap, Artificial Intelligence, and the line between hero and terrorist. It has many fundamental themes that hold a mirror to contemporary society in the guise of a huge world scale battle. But the finer examination of the human element allows the book to remain one of my absolute favorite entires in the Marvel Universe, and will likely earn it a spot as one of the best Ultron stories ever told.
Here’s a preview of what you can expect!
Comics
‘Curse of the Where Wolf’ Bites Into August Release With Trio of Werewolf Theatrical Screenings [Exclusive Preview]
Larry Chaney‘s hairy misadventures are continuing in the sequel graphic novel Curse of the Where Wolf from creative team Rob Saucedo, Debora Lancianese, and Jack Morelli, and its author is celebrating with a trio of horror’s greatest werewolf films.
The Curse of the Where Wolf hits shelves on August 7 from Encyclopocalypse Publications.
That coincides with the launch of a theatrical screening event in Houston, Texas, featuring a trio of seminal werewolf flicks turning 45 this year: The Howling on August 7, Wolfen on August 14, and An American Werewolf in London on August 21.
Each screening features a “werewolf in film” presentation as well as a book signing from Where Wolf author and River Oaks Theatre artistic director Rob Saucedo.
In the new graphic novel, “Being a werewolf sucks. Reporter Larry Chaney wanted to be a hero. Instead, he became a werewolf. Now, caught between incredible new powers and a desire to eat everything (and everyone) in sight, Larry must find a cure for his curse. Or die trying.”
“With Where Wolf, I wanted to tell a whodunit set in a furry convention, so the story was pretty contained within a very specific setting and genre. With Curse of the Where Wolf, I wanted to celebrate everything I love about the possibility of comic books. Curse of the Where Wolf is a funny book, in every sense of the phrase, but it’s also an earnest look at a person’s struggle to become a better version of themselves, especially when the alternative is to become a literal monster,” Saucedo says of Curse.
The original graphic novel was previously serialized as the first webcomic hosted on Fangoria before being collected by Encyclopocalypse Publications in 2023 and has already been optioned for film, podcast, and television development ahead of launch by producers James Fino (“The Freak Brothers” for Tubi, “Rick and Morty” for Adult Swim) and Charles Horak (First Date for Magnolia Pictures).
Expect Larry to find himself in even weirder situations in the 362-page full color sequel; Saucedo has provided Bloody Disgusting with exclusive art pages from the upcoming graphic novel that showcase lupine humor.
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